Guys,

I hate to be writing about this. My beautiful wife of 22 years has been having a number of severe headaches recently, one of them so bad I had to take her to our doctor’s to stop it. They ultimately decided to do imaging to learn more. The headaches turned out not to be cluster migraines, as was originally diagnosed.

After a series of MRI’s Wednesday, the imaging revealed a tumor on the right side of her brain, above the right ear. The tumor is attached to the dura, the inner membrane of the brain, and just above the right ear. It is a largely "silent" part of the brain, assuming a brain organization like that of most right-handed people.

Surgery is scheduled for this Tuesday morning. We met with the most prominent, experienced neurosurgeon in this area on Thursday. He believes there are three possibilities, at least one of which is very terrible. I’m not clear on the relative strengths of these possibilities, but based on looking at the tumor itself, his first inclination is to ID it as a meningioma. They are almost - but not always - benign. They have a very high survival and non recurrence rate. However, the large amount of swelling he saw is not normally associated with these; although it can be. That swelling indicates a lot of recent growth. Seeing this, his next most likely candidate is a metastasizing cancer, from someplace else in the body. This would of course be extremely bad. The least likely identity is an infection. If it were that, surgical removal would be the end of the matter. It will take three or four business days after the surgery to get the pathology report and know for sure.

We are stunned. Difficult to believe we are talking about these sorts of things, let alone facing them. We've had our share or more of family grief - the loss of a child and all but one of our parents. The same day as the imaging results came in, my niece had a double mastectomy. She's being pretty brave, but as you can imagine, quite scared.

Best of luck Eugene, both with the final diagnosis (they will undoubtedly biopsy the tissue), and with the surgery itself, and the recovery.

Your wife has a good chance of being just fine. Also keep in mind that it isn't impossible to see two problems at the same time - ie. the relatively benign tumor and infection at the same time, which could explain the swelling. I really hope it isn't metastasis.

Again, I wish your wife and yourself the very best of luck on this one.

Prayers and thoughts. Battle on.

I hope that it turns out for the best. It is always sad to hear of anyone's having to face health issues. It takes a toll on everyone not only because of the known, but because of the fear caused by the unknown.

My best wishes for the both of you.

Tough to read this news. Be strong man. She needs that.

Prayers for your wife and you. Please keep us informed.

ps for what it's worth, my wife was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer seven years ago.
I made a similar post on SimHQ then. You would not believe the power of prayer.

Wish the best to you both, keep in mind positive thoughts, ALWAYS!

I'm terribly sorry to hear this, I'll definately be keeping you both in my thoughts and the very best of luck to you both.

Jim

I am so sorry to hear that Eugene, it's the kind of news everyone fears. My thoughts and best wishes are with you and your wife, and I hope all turns out as well as possible.

I have a friend who was diagnosed recently with a tumor in about the same location. I hope you guys get good news, and the strength and support to not only fight this, but to beat it. My thoughts are with you.

Hi Eugene.

All my prayers and good vibes to you and your wife. Best of luck and, even better than luck, keep a positive outlook on the situation. Hang tough, my friend.

- Dave -

The news we all fear most, why can`t it be me. Be strong for your wife. Don`t loose hope. Our prayers our with you both.

Thanks guys - your kind words and prayers mean a lot to us. These toughest challenges always seem to put everything else in perspective.

Also - when something like this happens, we always find out how many others are suffering tremendous challenges and pain. I think of it as the vaccination against "why me?" sorts of thinking, and focusing on what must be done as well as cherishing what we do have.

You guys are the best.

That is a great attitude to have. The medical world is an incredible one and I sincerely hope they can find a way to completely cure your wife and for both of you to move past this. I'll be sending out positive vibes and hope we hear good news from you soon. It certainly is a reminder that every day is a gift and life can change literally in minutes. If you need to talk you know all of us are always here (24/7)..

Best Wishes...
Chris

Eugene,

I am so sorry to read this. May God bless and please let us know how she is doing.

Best of luck to you and your wife, Eugene. Hope all turns out well. Sounds like you have a great doctor working for you.

Sorry to hear this, stay strong, and best of luck.

Her and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers, Eugene. Please keep us updated.

Thoughts and well wishes with you and your wife, stay strong and stay as positive as possible!

We will be praying for you and your family.

I'm sorry to hear your news Eugene. I will also have your wife and yourself in my thoughts.

Eugene, I know that you and Wifey are pretty anxious right now. That is expected, but I want to try and encourage you to focus on the positives, like the quick diagnosis, the really short surgery wait time, having a top-field surgeon who is doing this type of surgery (by your numbers) every 3rd day. This is awesome and praiseworthy!
If you can, pray. Know that I and my Wife, my friends from Church, WILL be praying for peace for you two. And for a successful outcome.
You may feel alone, but clearly you are not.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery.


Wheels

Well wishes to you & your Mrs, I hope for a successful surgery and may she get well soon.

Prayers and best wishes for a complete recovery.

Hoping for the best Eugene. May all go well on Tuesday, and your wife recover ASAP.

Sorry to hear Eugene, sending positive thoughts your way, hang in there, best wishes.

That's a lot to take in and a lot to deal with. I hope you all can get some rest and take it one day at a time. Of course you're there for your wife, but be sure you've got someone to talk to also. Keep your spirits up and try not to dwell too much on it. Find some fun distractions in the meantime. You have a lot of people here praying for you two as well.

Prayers for you and your wife. Don't know how I could handle something like that, hope I'd be as strong as you are.

Exactly how I thought when I became a quadriplegic.

Again best wishes to you, your wife, and family.

You and your wife and family are in our thoughts and prayers. We hope for the best possible outcome from the surgery. Get some rest and stay strong.

My thoughts and prayers are with you and your wife. I know in my heart she will be just fine.

Rob

Best wishes to you and your wife Eugene, I can't imagine how stressful this must be for you both. Sincerely hope things work out for the best, hang in there.

That is so sad. I hope all is well.

Miao, Cat

Fingers crossed and best wishes for both of you. Hang in there!

Just terrible - can only pray things go well for you both.

This really brings home what is actually important in our lives. So sorry to hear you are going through this together. My wife had a tumor removed from her overy last week that turned out to be benign, so
I can understand what you are going through. Saying a prayer for you both. Keep your chin up, and please let us know how Tuesday goes.

Best of luck Eugene, to you and your wife.

Wow Eugene that is a lot to deal with I hope the Big Guy upstairs is listening 'cos it sounds like a whole lot of prayer is heading his way. We will all keep you and your Beautiful Wife in our thoughts this week and hope everything is fine, stay strong.

I don't have the words. I am keeping you and your family in my thoughts and I hope this goes as smoothly as possible.

I recall when my father in law went in for a triple by pass. My wife was devastated and was too scared to focus on anything but the worst possible outcome... 15 years later he is still very much with us and in excellent health

Good luck, Eugene. You and yours will be in my prayers.

I am so sorry to hear of this. Thoughts and prayers headed your way.



Bullet

Eugene,
For what ever it's worth to you, my wife was diagnosed with sphenorbital meningioma around the right eye socket in 2006. The tumour was affecting most of the right front quarter of her skull from her ear to her eye and in the skull base as well and was also displacing her eye out and down about 3-5mm and there was about a 1 in 3 chance she'd lose the eye during surgery. It also had started to invade the dura and she had experienced migrane headaches prior to diagnosis. It was benign but accelerating in growth and apparently she'd probably had it for quite a long time. A team of two neurosurgeons did about a 7 hour operation to resect the damaged bone and then reconstruct it and clean the optic nerve and dura and she has recovered extremely well. She tires a little more easily then before and when very tired has double vision but other than that is now fine. I think I do know how strange and surreal things feel for you right now but it's important to keep positive and plan for the best. I know for me I felt there was no other choice because the alternative wasn't bearable. Luckily for me and my wife it worked out well. You should prepare yourself for a very tough day when she's admitted for surgery and you sit in the ICU waiting room until she comes out of surgery. It's the hardest thing I've done. The yearly MRIs checking for reoccurence are also very stressful as she gets pretty scared around that time but it's always a big relief when they come back clear. It does make you re-evaluate things in your life quite a lot too as you realise that a lot of stuff that fills up your day isn't really important.

I hope you and your wife also have our luck and everything goes well for her and she has a good and full recovery.

Best wishes,
Stonehouse

Eugene, please post or PM me your wife's name so I can include her by name in prayers. Best,

Don

Very sorry to hear this! A friend of mine had a brain tumor removed some years ago and has never had a problem once it was gone so these things can end well. I have the greatest hope that things will be the same for your wife.

Just know that we're all pulling for you both here.

Kurt

I am very sorry to hear this. Thoughts and prayers for your wife and you.

Eugene,
Best wishes for your wife and you in this difficult time. I hope everything turns out well.

Steve

What a shame. Hope all works out for the best. Good luck, best wishes.

Mojo otw!

May the angels be with your wife, my friend. God Bless!

Best wishes to you both. Hope things turn out well and she has a smooth recovery.

My thoughts are with your wife, you and your family.

Just want to let you guys (and gals!) know how very much your words mean, and how inspiring it is to hear about how you or yours have faced such matters and prevailed. I must say also that just hearing from you pushes back a creeping, claustrophobic sense of impending grief that with your prayers, hope, and some luck isn't necessary. We spent nearly half a day going through the exhausting pre-op meetings yesterday; that really wore on her. Monday she has more scans to image the rest of her body. She'll get GPS trackers attached at various points around her head. That means some additional shaving of her beautiful blond hair - which she says, "I could care less. Take it all." She finally got some sleep last night. As some have suggested, we are focusing on one day at a time, doing things that both distract and that we enjoy. She is cooking and baking, and getting Sluggo to protect her plants, and spend some time outdoors on a beautiful day.

And every good day is one less bad day.

All the best of luck to you!

Hang in there Eugene!

Jason

Best wishes and speedy recovery to your wife. I will be praying for your family and your wife. Be strong!

Prayers Inbound Eugene.. Hope Your Wife has a speedy recovery..

I am sure everything will turn out fine

We will be praying for your family. Best wishes!

This is hard to hear, especially after losing my brother to a glioblastoma a few years ago. If it isn't a glioblastoma she should be in good shape, it's amazing what the brain doctors can do nowadays, it's almost routine.

Best wishes and may God protect your wife.

Eugene, I wish you and your family the best in this difficult time. Keep thinking positive thoughts, you're family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Terrible news, Eugene, and I wish you and your wife strength in the coming days!

Fingers crossed, Eugene!

My extended family has been hit with Cancer many times...many have survived and thrived. It's painful while going through it all, but medical science has made truly fantastic improvements over the last three decades!

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, so that all of you can get back to your lives.

Best wishes for her and you. fingers crossed and keep positive , there is more chances this tumor and swelling being benign : You'll have a lot of love and good times to share again !

So sorry for the news Eugene. Sending thoughts, prayers and good vibes your way. As you may remember my wife had an inoperable cancerous tumor on her neck a few years ago. After aggressive chemo, radiation, prayers, great attitude and the will to live, she pulled through. Now the doctor says that there is no evidence of a tumor ever being there.
We don't go to church as much as we should but occasionally visit my moms church. When my wife found out she had inoperable cancer we happened to be visiting my moms church. She decided to walk to the front of the church to receive prayer and five elders surrounded her and began praying vigorously for her. She later told me that she felt something run through her body from head to toe while they were praying. During her treatment, the blood tests should have been showing her numbers dropping like rocks but hers stayed normal. The oncologist said she was a freak of nature. He also was amazed that she was still working ( she's a hairdresser with her own salon) as the aggressive treatment he was giving her normally sends patients to the hospital.

As far as the hair goes, my wife lost her beautiful blonde hair too. She ended up taking a lace type head band and attaching hair around it. Then she would wear a hat to cover the top of her head. With the hat on and the hair around the sides and back, you couldn't even tell she was bald. She looked great and had many cool hats she could wear.

Hoping for the very best Eugene.

I hope everything goes OK...

I do not believe in the power of prayer but, there is no arguing with results.

I am very happy that you guys met with such a favorable outcome and sincerely hope that Eugene and his wife meet the same end!

I know it's probably late and you're spending time with your wife Eugene, but I wanted to post another "well wish" for tomorrow's procedure. Every good thought and hopeful desire is sent your way and that the best prognosis for your wife is found.

Good news! I am in the hospital waiting for her to move from Recovery to the ICQ. Longish, complex surgery. The tumor was diagnosed as a meningioma, benign, attached to the brain's membrane. It fell out along with the dura (membrane) when the resected that portion of the dura. So it was pushing into the brain, but not invading it. Surgeon says recurrence rate in this instance should be in the single digits.

I want to thank all of you for your support, your prayers, your expressions of hope and experience. Also thanks to Bill Grant who has been on the phone and texting the whole time, and *marshalling* his prayer squad during the surgery. She faces a long recovery, but with far better prospects than what we may have been facing. Thank you again - SimHQ once more demonstrates its power for good, in times of great need.

Eagerly awaiting the chance to see her, within the hour.

That is great to hear. I hope she was a speedy recovery!

Good to hear the surgery went well. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Phew .. best wishes, and may she get well soon.

Amazing news, can't tell you how happy I am for you both!
That makes my day too.

Great news Man, very happy for you both, and hope the missus gets well soon.

Great news Eugene.
Best wishes for her speedy recovery.
God Bless.

Great news, and more good vibes on the way!

Glad to hear. I`m too hoping for a speedy recovery.

It's wonderful to read the good news! I may not know you personally, but couldn't help but be touched by this thread.

I wish her a speedy recovery.

Great to hear and i wish here speedy recovery too!

Great news Eugene, best wishes for a speedy recovery too.

Hurrah!

That is great news Eugene! Sending my wishes for a fast, comfortable and complete recovery!

Eugene, I'm so glad to here this news! Thanks for the update, and I wish you both all the best.

Eugene,

Great news indeed! Best wishes with the recovery. Will keep praying for your family.

Best news I've heard lately, my best wishes to you and your wife for a speedy recovery.

Jim

Yes! I went looking for your thread just now and got the best news of the day!

Great news!

I'll keep her in my prayers. I'm sorry for this struggle you are facing.

Better than I hoped for. Great news.

Wow somehow I missed this. All my best to you and your wife man.

Fantastic!

Awesome news Eugene! I knew she would be OK!

Rob

Great news! Thanks for letting us know Eugene.

- Doug

Great, great news

Smiles. Seriously great news, Eugene. My best to you and your wife. Now for a speedy recovery.

Wonderful news! So glad to hear this.

Sounds like the absolute best case outcome, Eugene! Great news!

Good news, hope she has a speedy recovery.

My brother has been suffering from what he believes were cluster headaches for years, until today, when he blacked out in the car, and said he felt extreme tingling in his arm and face. So im thinking i need to get him in for an MRI.

Fantastic great news! All the best for a speedy recovery!

That is awesome news . I hope for a speedy recovery.


Bullet

The power of prayer!

Nice! All the best to you and your wife during her recovery.

Peter.

the man upstairs has SimHQ.com on his 90 million display cloud heaven pc.

AMEN ! wonderful news

Great news! All the best to you and your family.

Good news! She comes home tomorrow. Although still afflicted by headaches and nausea, they are within the expected bounds. Vital signs solid, all systems go. Equally important, her spirits are soaring. Hospital staff and surgeon have been truly terrific, human as well as competant.

I want to thank each of you for your kind words and prayers. Your outpouring of good will has helped me especially during those hours and days before the neurosurgery. I am reminded how a simple word, a moment taken, can make a big difference. Both of us are humbled most by seeing all around us those whose outcomes were not so blessed as my wife's. My heart goes out to them, and especially my nephew, whose relatively young wife had a double masectomy the same day as Staci was getting the MRI that revealed the tumor. The cancer had spread to one lymph node. They have four young kids. She worked in the defense industry until the twins were born just four years ago.

My thanks again to you all.

Eugene

Glad to hear things are progressing well, Eugene! I'll keep sending my best wishes for continued progess.

Eugene, please let us know how things are going when you get a minute. Thanks.